Door lock



Aug. 15, 1939.

w. R. SCHLAGE 2,169,743

DOOR LOCK V N TOR.

IN (Madam/79.

ATTORNEY.

Patented Aug. 15, 1939 UNITED STATES noon LOCK Walter R. Schlage, SanFrancisco, Calif., assignor to Schlage Lock Company, San Francisco,Calif., a corporation of California Application October 8, 1937, SerialNo. 167,993

2 Claims. (Cl. 292145) This invention relates to door locks, andespecially to a frame and housing structure wherein the latch bolt andactuating mechanism are supported and enclosed.

The object of the present invention is generally to improve and simplifythe construction and operation of door locks of the character described;

to provide a door lock including a housing and frame, together with alatch bolt and actuating mechanism, which is adapted to be completely 1assembled, and in the assembled form to be applied to a door by merelycutting a rectanguto provide a housing which also serves as escutcheonplates for the door, said plates extending over the edges of the notchedportion of the door a sufiicient distance to reenforce and strengthenthe door and to receive the screws or other fastening means whereby thelock is secured in the door; to provide a housing and frame which serveas a closure and support for a pair of sliding plates which function asguides and supports for the latch bolt; to provide means for imparting asliding movement to said plates and latch bolt to extend or retract thelatch bolt; and further, to provide indicating means on one or both ofthe plates to display visually whether the latch bolt is retracted orprojected.

The door lock is shown by way of illustration in the accompanyingdrawing, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a door,showing the manner in which it is cut out or notched to receive the doorlock;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the door lock applied; Fig. 3 is ahorizontal section taken on line, IIIIII of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the door lock, said view being shownpartially in section, and broken away to show the inner frame, thesliding plates, and the latch bolt supported thereby;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the frame;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one of the sliding plates, said viewshowing the latch bolt in dotted lines; and

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the latch bolt.

Referring to the drawing in detail, and particularly to Figs. 2 to 7inclusive, A indicates in general a door, and B a completely assembleddoor lock secured therein. The lock comprises a housing consisting of aface plate 2 having an. opening formed therein through which projects alatch bolt 3, and a pair of side plates 4 and 5 which are connected withthe face plate 2; the three plates forming an integral unit which isU-shaped in a horizontal plane.

Secured between the side plates 4 and 5 of the 5 housing is a frameconsisting of upper and lower spaced horizontally-disposed bars 6 and 1,connected by a vertical end-bar 8 which forms the inner end of theframe, the outer end being open as shown in Fig. 5, and the bars 6 and I10 terminating in lugs 6a and la which function as" fastening meansbetween the housing and the frame, as the lugs may be screwed, rivetedor welded with relation to the inner surface of the face plate 2 of thehousing. The frame and the I housing, when secured with relation to eachother, form anintegral unit, and a channel is formed around this unit,the function of which will later be described.

By referring to Figs. 3, 4 and 5, it will be noted 0 that the horizontalbars 6 and 'i are cut away on' opposite sides, intermediate their ends,and that these cut-away portions form, with the housing plates 4 and 5,guideways as clearly shown at 9 in Fig. 4. Slidably mounted in theseguideways are plates Ill. Their upper and lower edges are provided withlugs l l which project into the guideways and the ends of the plates arealso provided with lugs as indicated at |2-l2 and I4-I4, which serveanother function.

In Fig. 7 the latch bolt 3 is shown. The latch 1 bolt is formed of asquare or rectangularlyshaped bar of suitable length, and the sidesthereof are cut away as indicated at l5-l5 intermediate its ends, toreceive the plates Ill-l0. The total length of the plates I0 is the sameas the cut-away portions on the sides of the latch bolt, and interplaybetween the plates I0 and the latch bolt is thus prevented when theplates H) are placed on opposite sides of the latch bolt. 40

' Vertical movement of the latch bolt with relation to the plates IE! isalso prevented, as the lugs l2 and! will project over and under the topand bottom faces of the latch bolt, as clearly shown in Figs. 4 and 6.The plates thus form a support for the latch bolt, and as the platesare'- in turn supported by the frame and slidable in the guideways 9formed between the frame and the housing plates 4 and. 5, it will bepossible to impart a sliding movement to the plates and the latch boltin unison. This may be accomplished in varying ways, but is hereillustrated by means of a pin I6 which is secured in one of the plates[0 and which extends through a slot I1 formed in the side plate 4 of thehousing. The opposite 5 plate ID, or that which lies against the innerface of the housing plate 5, has the words In use printed or otherwiseformed thereon. This indicates whether the bolt is projected orretracted, as the plate or the indication printed thereon is movableinto and out of register with a verticallydisposed slot I 8 formed inthe plate 5.

In actual practice, the assembly of the lock is exceedingly simple, asit is only necessary to place the latch bolt centrally between the upperand lower bars 6 and 1 of the frame, and then to apply the plates it) soas to secure and support the bolt between them. The frame, together withthe plates l and the latch bolt, is then inserted in the housing betweenthe side plates 4 and thereof, and the lugs 6a and 1a are then welded,riveted, or otherwise secured. This com.- pletes the assembly of thelock, as the only additional member required is the pin 16 which may beinserted at any time by merely screwing it into the plate Ill which liesadjacent the inner face of the side plate 4.

To install a lock of this character in a door, it is only necessary tocut a rectangularly-shaped notch in the edge of the door, as shown at Cin Fig. 1, and to recess the outer edge of said notch as indicated at DDto accommodate the thickness of the face plate 2 and the lugs 6a and 1a.After the door has, been notched as shown, the lock in assembled form isslid into the notch, as shown in Fig. 2, and there secured by screws 20or similar fastening means, which extend through the side plates 4 and 5and the door proper. By referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, it will be notedthat the side plates 4 and 5 of the lock housing are considerably Widerand longer than the width and length of the notch C which is formed inthe door; also that the side plates 4 and 5 are considerably wider andlonger than the U-shaped frame (see Figs. 4 and 5) which is securedbetween the side plates 4 and 5. This enlargement of the plates, both inwidth and length, forms a chamiel around the frame, which passes aboveand below and rearwardly of the frame. This channel is of the same widthas the thickness of the door, and as the frame exactly fits the notch inthe door, flanges are formed above, below, and rearwardly of the frame,which guide the frame into the notch C. At the same time these flangesproject over the edges of the notched portion of the door a sufficientdistance to reenforce and strengthen the door and at the same timepermit the fastening screws 28 employed to pass not only through theplates 4 and 5 but also through the door proper, the screw or bolt holesformed in the door for the reception of the screws being shown at 2| inFig. 1.

The lock here illustrated is particularly intended for doors which arethin. Such doors are now coming into extensive use in airplanes,streamline trains, and in other places where reduction of weight is animportant factor. The doors may be used between compartments, as toiletdoors, or as swinging doors; and if a person desires to prevent anyonefrom opening the door while in a compartment, he merely projects thelatch bolt by means of the pin 16, and when he does so, he also movesthe plates [0 with it, and in so doing moves the indicating words, suchas Closed or In use, into alignment with the opening l8, thus visuallyshowing that the room is occupied. In leaving the room, the bolt isnaturally retracted, and it remains in this position until the door isagain closed from the interior. The frame and housing in the lock givegreat strength to the lock structure, and in turn, to the door. Theinstallation in the door is quickly and readily accomplished, and as themechanism employed is exceedingly simple, the chance of any part of thelock becoming inoperative or out of order is remote.

While the pin 16 has been illustrated for projecting or retracting thelatch bolt, a spindle with a rollback member could obviously be employed, and while certain other features of the invention have been moreor less specifically described and illustrated, I nevertheless wish itun-- derstood that changes may be resorted to within the scope of theappended claims, and that the materials and finish of the lock may besuch as the manufacturer desires or varying uses and conditions dictate.

Having thus described and illustrated my invention, what I claim anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a latch mechanism of the character described a housing composed ofa front and a pair of connected side plates, a frame disposed betweenthe side plates of the housing, said frame including upper and lowerarms and said arms being recessed on opposite sides to form upper andlower pairs of guideways, a pair of sliding plates disposed between thearms within the housing, each plate having upper and lower lugsprojecting into the guideways to limit sliding movement of the plates, alatch bolt having a recess formed on each side to receive a portion ofeach sliding plate, pairs of lugs on each end of each sliding plateengaging upper and lower faces of the latch bolt and supporting thelatch bolt between the sliding plates, and means projecting through thehousing for imparting a sliding movement to the plates and the latchbolt carried thereby.

2. In a latch mechanism of the character described a housing, a latchbolt mounted therein, said latch bolt being rectangular in cross-sectionto present upper and lower surfaces and a pair of sides, said latch bolthaving its sides transversely recessed for the greater portion of itslength, a pair of plates, disposed one on each side of the latch bolt,each plate having a portion extending into the adjacent recess, a pairof lugs on each end of each plate, said lugs engaging the upper andlower faces of the latch bolt and supporting the latch bolt between theplates, and the portions of the plate extending into the recesses of thelatch bolt securing the latch bolt against endwise movement withrelation to the plates, guideways formed in the housing, lugs formed onthe upper and lower edges of the plates extending into the guideways topermit sliding movement of the plates and the latch bolt and to limitsaid sliding movement, and means for imparting a sliding movement to theplates and the latch bolt carried thereby, to retract or project thelatch bolt from the housmg.

WALTER R. SCHLAGE.

